The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

By the seaside.

A crystal lamp illuminated the beach at night.

Liszt sat on a rock, pondering how to communicate with Ake, "Ake, have you ever seen a dragon?"

"A dragon? Ake really wants to see a dragon. They say dragons are the most beautiful creatures in the world, but Ake has never seen a real dragon." Even as a Sea Sprite, she harbored an unending yearning for dragons.

"Dragons are indeed very beautiful."

In the end, Liszt decided to share the secret of the Fire Dragon with Ake: "Actually, big brother has a dragon, a young Little Fire Dragon named Leo. But this Little Fire Dragon is quite disobedient, even somewhat ungrateful." Seeing Ake's mouth gape in astonishment, he didn't forget to add a few bad words about the Little Fire Dragon.

"Ah! Does big brother really have a Fire Dragon?"

"Yes, it's a Little Fire Dragon I revived from the remains of a Fire Dragon on Black Horse Island, and that is my biggest secret. A dragon's influence is simply too great, so I haven't mentioned it to anyone. Therefore, Ake, you are the first person to know this secret."

Ake was both surprised and delighted, nodding earnestly, "Mmm, Ake will definitely keep the secret of the Fire Dragon for big brother!"

Liszt stroked her azure hair, smiling, "Actually, when it comes down to it, Ake, you are my most precious secret. Who would have thought that I would have a Sea Sprite sister?"

"Hee hee." Ake squinted her eyes, as comfortable as a contented little kitten.

Liszt wasn't lying; in his heart, Ake was far more important than Leo. The relative he recognized most was Ake, not the Tulip Family. Perhaps his physical blood ties couldn't be severed from the Tulip Family, but his soul was incompatible with the Tulip Family, as it was with this world.

Only the pure and blank Sea Sprite Ake was his warmest emotional refuge.

"I came to Dodo Island to find a volcano, to provide Leo with a suitable habitat, but Leo forgot about me the moment he burrowed into the volcano."

"Ah, what will big brother do? Don't lose Leo."

"No worries, ever since its rebirth, Leo requires food to sustain its flesh and blood body. There aren't many animals on Dodo Island to stave off its hunger, so sooner or later it will fly over from the volcano on an empty stomach to apologize to me."

As if she could envision the Little Fire Dragon apologizing to Liszt, Ake chuckled and said, "Hee hee, hearing big brother say this, Leo also sounds quite adorable."

"No, it is a poorly trained capricious young Evil Dragon."

"Perhaps Leo is still too little to understand, big brother could be a bit more patient with it. I believe that one day Leo will recognize big brother and become your most important companion. Like those legendary Dragon Knights, standing atop the most supreme power in the world."

"I think so too, which is why it needs proper guidance," Liszt shared his plans, "I need to constantly develop my territory to provide for this Fire Dragon, so I won't often stay on Dodo Island. I might visit every few days to train with Leo, and when I'm not here, I'll need you to take extra care of him."

"Mm-hm!"

"Moreover, if I take part in the Pioneer Mandate, I'll be gone for months, and the care of the Little Fire Dragon will also fall to you. We can't really let it starve to death." Being young, Leo would just be a burden if he followed him into battle, apart from providing no help, there was also the risk of exposure.

"Ake can catch fish for it to eat."

"Mm, once I find it in the Volcano Crater, I'll bring it over for you to meet. But be careful with Leo, he has a bit of a vile temperament, and you don't want to get hurt by him."

"Don't worry, Ake will take good care of herself," said Ake with an expectant expression, her eyes almost sparkling with stars. Even as a Sea Sprite, she was utterly defenseless against dragons—in this world, dragons represent all that is wonderful, even if there are Evil Dragons.

The Little Fire Dragon Leo belonged to the rank of Evil Dragons.

Humans could, without hesitation, valiantly set out to slay Evil Dragons to earn the heroic title of Dragon Slayer. They could also bestow countless positive epithets upon any dragon.

After revealing Leo to Ake.

Liszt suddenly felt much more relaxed; he hid too many secrets with nowhere to vent. Secrets such as the Smoke Dragon and the Formless Dragon were manageable, bearing no burden and could be kept for a long time. But the secret of Little Fire Dragon Leo couldn't be kept forever; he always needed someone to help share the burden.

Originally, he was inclined to tell the Earl about the secret of the Little Fire Dragon, so that the Earl could help him raise the dragon.

However, with the discovery of the Giant Algae Forest, it was possible to maintain the independent care of Little Fire Dragon Leo in his territory. So, he extinguished the idea of seeking family help in raising the dragon, trying to minimize exposure risk as much as possible.

Now, revealing the secret to Ake was the most suitable choice.

She could take care of Little Fire Dragon Leo in Liszt's absence—he couldn't expect a dragon, less than a few months old, to take care of itself. Liszt didn't know how other young dragons were nurtured and grew, perhaps they were naturally strong enough to cope with crises.

Just burrowing into the vast forest, they could grow up safely.

But Leo was different; he was a Fire Dragon, born on an island in the sea!

He couldn't turn invisible like a Formless Dragon, so he couldn't hunt without revealing himself, nor could he swim in the sea to catch fish. Hunger could expose him to human sight at any time, and then he might be captured by powerful knights, ending up either being forced into dragon riding or converted into a Dragon Domain Landlord.

Meeting Liszt was his good luck—he helped him revive, fed him sparingly to grow up, didn't ride him or force him, and even put in great effort searching for a volcano.

Like this.

After talking about dragons for half the night, they each went to sleep.

…

The next day, before dawn broke, Liszt had already gotten up, taken his toiletries out of the Gemstone Space to carefully clean up, and then enjoyed a hearty breakfast.

He hurriedly went up the mountain.

The path was familiar; he could just fly up directly. Soon, he arrived at the Volcano Crater. The pool was still boiling, the magma was still tumbling, and the smell of sulfur was still pungent and acrid.

"Leo!"

"Leo!"

"Leo!"

Besides the echo from the Volcano Crater, there was no response. Even using the Eye of Magic, he couldn't spot any trace of Leo. Despite being mentally prepared, the lack of response after a night still made him feel instantly terrible. It took a while to adjust before he went down the mountain to explore the Human Skull Tree Forest.

The island wasn't very large, and the Human Skull Tree Forest was even more distinctly ring-shaped around the island's shore, making it easy to scan with the Eye of Magic.

So by the afternoon, he had explored the entire Dodo Island, and he had also found the Elf Bug—a Human Skull Tree Elf Bug—awarded for the Smoke Mission.

On a noticeably taller Human Skull Tree, the Human Skull Worm was comfortably basking in the Sun.

Suddenly, a lot of delicious Jade Powder fell from the sky, which it ate and ate until it bit onto a finger and instantly contracted to become Liszt's thirty-ninth Elf Bug.

"Mission completed, reward: one Human Skull Tree Elf Bug."

The Human Skull Tree Forest had no potential for development on Dodo Island; Liszt had no plans to develop this island, it was just a training ground for himself and Leo.

Therefore, this Cordyceps was to be taken back to Black Horse Island for cultivation.

He quickly turned his attention to the new Smoke Mission.

"Mission: The astronomical knowledge you brought has greatly inspired Ake, leading her to gradually refine her understanding of Magic Power. Perhaps more knowledge could provide her a better reference to understand the essence of magic operation. Reward: Ake's new magic."